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STUDENTS' E-MAIL NEWS FROM CZECH REPUBLIC
Faculty of Social Science of Charles University
Smetanovo nabr. 6
110 01 Prague 1
Czech Republic
e-mail: CAROLINA@cuni.cz
tel: (+4202) 24810804, ext. 252, fax: (+4202) 24810987
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C A R O L I N A No 244, Friday, April 25, 1997.
FROM THE EVENTS OF THE PAST WEEK (APRIL 16-23)
Russian PM in Prague
Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin spent two days in the
Czech Republic meeting with Czech Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus and the
heads of both chambers of Parliament, Milan Zeman and Petr Pithart. His
April 20-21 meetings touched on economic, financial and political
relations between the two countries.
Chernomyrdin paid his first visit, however, to Skoda Pilsen Director
Lubomir Soudek in Pilsen (Plzen) in support of the joint venture project
to build a Skoda plant in Russia. They also discussed opening a joint
venture to manufacture and assemble Tatra-ZIL and Tatra-Kamaz trucks.
Chernomyrdin emphasized Russia is prioritizing the development of
Czech-Russian business relations, and that political relations should
not stand in the way.
Two documents were signed April 21. An amendment to the 1994
contract concerning the payment of Russian debts specifies that the
1995-97 interest on the 3.5-billion-USD debt will be paid partially in
currency and partially in merchandise (the debt was to be paid off by
2003, but the payment calendar was extended to 2020). Deputy interior
ministers of both countries signed an agreement to cooperate in fighting
organized crime.
Concerning security issues, Chernomyrdin said Russia is not
forbidding anyone NATO membership, but that this may not be the proper
time. Klaus said he believes the difference in opinion over NATO entry
will not complicate the two countries' relations in the future.
Petra Sevcikova/Andrea Snyder
Pope John Paul II to Visit
Pope John Paul II will arrive in Prague April 25. This is his third
visit to the Czech Republic, having come to Czechoslovakia in 1990 and
both the Czech and Slovak republics in 1995. His visit is to
commemoration of the 1,000-year anniversary of the death of Saint
Adelbert (Svaty Vojtech), the first Czech bishop from Bohemia.
Adelbert is celebrated as the most important Czech saint, preceded
only by Saint Wenceslas. He was the single surviver of the massacre of
the powerful Slavnikov clan. Two years later, while working as
a missionary among the pagan Prussians, they murdered him April 23,
997. Because he spent half his life abroad, historians call Adelbert the
first Czech European.
Head Abbott at the Benedictine Monastery in Brevnov Anastaz Opasek
was published in Tyden magazine saying that because of his constant
wandering, Adelbert became "one of our first great expatriates, for whom
there was no place in his own country and who, after his death, the
nation celebrates as a hero." Recently, conflicts between three cities:
Prague, Aachen (Germany) and Gniezdno (Poland) have arisen. Each of the
three cities claims the right to Adelbert's remains.
Pope John Paul II will arrive in Prague two days after the
anniversary. He will ride through Prague in the Popemobile, greeting the
populace. He will also bless believers at two outdoor ceremonies.
Following an April 26 mass in Hradec Kralove, he should meet with
President Vaclav Havel and visit the Brevnov monastery. Eight cardinals,
58 bishops and 900 Czech priests will assist the Pope with the service
on the Letna plains April 27.
Zuzana Kawaciukova/Andrea Snyder
Zeman Calls Them Cowards
Social Democrat Chairman Milos Zeman calls the government-prepared
economic package a bundle of chaotic measures. "If this government is
trying markedly to correct its current business policies, and is not
capable of determining either collective or individual responsibility,
then it is a certain form of cowardice and hypocrisy," Zeman was quoted
as saying in the April 17 edition of Czech daily Pravo.
Zeman says that the government's steps will lead the country into
the ground. Although Zeman is not pushing for early elections, he
announced a "100-day inauguration of the government reforms." He says
that people need time to realize how unsuccessful the social and
economic policies are.
Prime Minister and Civic Democratic Party Chairman Vaclav Klaus told
Czech daily MF DNES, "these measures are not easy, but they mean taking
a positive, healing step forward. We believe in these measures."
Christian Democrat Chairman and Agriculture Minister Josef Lux said the
steps were "unpopular but necessary." Civic Democratic Alliance Chairman
Michael Zantovsky says the document is a "fundamental signal of the
coalition's new energy." MF Dnes published a poll showing that 45 per
cent of respondents support the new measures. Of those, 16 per cent are
sure, and 29 per cent have reservations. About 42 per cent disagree, and
20 per cent of those disagree entirely. More than 70 per cent are
calling for the dismissal of Finance Minister Ivan Kocarnik and Health
Minister Jan Strasky. One of the economic package's main points is the
introduction of import deposits for most consumer and food goods.
Although it will not apply to citrus fruits, bananas, coffee and tea, it
will affect cosmetics, household cleaners, furniture, carpets, clothes,
cars, consumer electronics and others - the goal obviously being to
decrease the volume of imported goods. Large companies are expected to
deal with the situation more easily than smaller companies, which may
have problems paying the 20 per cent of the import price as a deposit.
David Vlk and Petra Sevcikova/Andrea Snyder
Zeman's Party on Edge of Financial Bankruptcy
All the Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD) bank accounts were
blocked April 21 because the party has not paid income taxes since
1991. The freezing of party financial assets, which prevents party
representatives' access to party money, could lead to the party's
inability to making any payments and, eventually, to its bankruptcy. The
Social Democrats are the strongest opposition party.
The decision was made by the Prague 1 Financial Office because the
CSSD has not paid 1991 income taxes of 10.4 million crowns, and is now
increased by 8 million crowns in penalties. Commerce Bank (Komercni
banka) was the first bank to carry out the ruling.
CSSD representatives were very upset with the Financial Office's
decision. "In a situation where the economy of this state is in jeopardy
because of massive tax evasions in the business sector and other
criminal phenomena, the Ministry of Finance decided intentionally to
punish its political rival," said CSSD advisor and Senator Egon Lansky
to daily MF DNES April 23.
Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus sharply rejected any speculation about
a political motivation for the blocking: "I consider it utterly
scandalous if anybody claims that there is political persecution," said
Klaus in an interview for Czech Radio April 22. "The decision was made
by the specific Financial Office. The Minister of Finance (Klaus' party
colleague Ivan Kocarnik) did not intervene at all in this case, I asked
him about this issue immediately." Klaus' claim was confirmed by Milan
Rehak, a Finance Office representative.
Besides unpaid taxes, CSSD owes money to several banks. Party
financial experts admitted loans of 61 million crowns in the annual
party report.
CSSD explains its financial difficulties with the long-time legal
dispute concerning the ownership of the party's traditional residence,
the People's House (Lidovy dum). Incomes from the rent of the party
headquarters were part of the party budget till 1993, when the Ministry
of Finance called the party's ownership of the property into question
and the court process blocked the account where the rent was deposited.
The dispute is pending because, on the one hand, the Ministry of Finance
did not prove state ownership of the building, while the Social
Democrats have not submitted evidence of their ownership. The building,
where the Czechoslovak Communist Party was founded, now houses the
American Cultural Center.
Pavel Novak/Milan Smid
More Czechs Interested in NATO Membership, but Still in Minority
According to the newest polls, 42 per cent of Czech respondents
support the entry of the Czech Republic into NATO, which is 4 per cent
more than half a year ago. Thirty-two per cent do not agree. One-third
of Social Democrat voters and 61 per cent of ruling Civic Democratic
Party agree with membership.
The Institute for Public Opinion Research (IVVM) also released the
results of polls on voter confidence in the president, the government,
the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate last week. Sixty-six per cent of
Czech people trust President Vaclav Havel, in comparison to 86 per cent
in January. Both houses of the Parliament retained their 25-per-cent
(lower house) and 23-per-cent (upper house) ratings. Thirty-eight per
cent of respondents have confidence in the government, 5 per cent less
than in January.
Two polls on political party preference done by IVVM and the Center
for Empirical Research (STEM) in mid-April show different results: Civic
Democratic Party 23 per cent (IVVM) and 22 per cent (STEM), Social
Democrats 23 and 24, Civic Democratic Alliance 11 and 13, Christian
Democrats 10 and 12, Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia 8 and 11 and
the Republicans 6 per cent (STEM).
Roman Jedlicka/Jan Majer
Ivan Masek Founds a Fraction in ODA
Civic Democratic Alliance (ODA) parliamentary club Chairman Ivan
Masek announced April 17 he was founding a party faction. It was the
result of recent disputes between the party's founding fathers and
liberals who have gained control of ODA leadership (see Carolina 240,
242).
The new wing in the party intends to compete with the new leaders in
creating and promoting the party's platform. A group of 20 of Masek's
supporters discussed his proposal April 16. According to some of them
the fraction has not been founded yet. "It will come into being only if
all 20 participants of the meeting decide the new party management is
not fulfilling the platform of the party," said Karel Ledvinka, vice
chairman of the Chamber of Deputies.
The management of ODA believes founding the faction is useless. The
party would do better to unite and work together, people are not
interested in internal disputes, said ODA Vice Chairman Michal Prokop in
the daily Denni telegraf April 18. Recently elected ODA Chairman Michael
Zantovsky, former Czech ambassador to United States, believes Masek's
activity is just a manifestation of his abundant energy.
Karolina Cebrovska/Jan Majer
New Faction Gets Little Attention
Only 35 Social Democrats expecting the foundation of a new
faction by the party's ex-vice chairman Karel Machovec attended
a meeting April 19 in Prague called For a New Style of Social Democrat
Work. However, because of such small interest in cracking the dominant
position of Social Democrat and Chamber of Deputies Chairman Milos
Zeman, the faction was not founded. "If the faction is to be founded, it
should be done only from the demand of the members," said Machovec about
the unsuccessful attempt to liberalize the party.
Intention to create a non-confrontational faction was not much
appreciated by the leadership of the party. For instance, Stanislav
Gross, chairman of the Social Democrat's parliamentary club, criticized
the idea as an attempt to draw attention in a different direction.
Petra Sevcikova/Matej Cerny
Wiesenthal Honored by Charles University
Simon Wiesenthal was awarded an honorary degree and a gold medal
April 16 at Prague's Charles University for lifetime achievment in his
fight against Nazism. Charles University thus followed Olomouc's Palacky
University and dozens of other universities and institutions throughout
the world which have awarded similar honors to the director of the
Jewish Documentation Center in Vienna.
Wiesenthal was born in 1908 in Galicia, Poland and studied
architecture in Prague and Lvov. He worked as an architect till the
beginning of the World War II. During the war he survived about a dozen
concentration camps and managed to escape several times. As he said in
interview in the daily Pravo on April 21, when he was liberated by the
Americans in Matthausen he did not know what to do. He did not want to
go back to Poland, where everything reminded him of the deaths of almost
90 relatives, from which only his wife survived the Holocaust. Therefore
he decided to work with the Americans in pursuing Nazi war criminals.
Wiesenthal said to the daily Pravo, in answering whether his
memories have something to say to the young, "in recent years many young
people have come to me asking for advice how to talk with their
grandparents. They know that they were in the Nazi Party, but they
don't want to tell them anything about it. Those young ones, however,
let's say between the ages of 16 and 32, they want to know the truth."
Libuse Kolouchova/Matej Cerny
Long Sentences in Orlik Case
One of the most serious criminal cases in postwar Czech history
- the so-called Orlik murders - finished in Prague's Regional Court
April 18. Ludvik Cerny (32) a Vladimir Kuna (33) were given life
sentences. Karel Kropac (37), a former police swat-team member, got 21
years, his sister Irena Meierova (35) got 12 years and Petr Chodounsky
(32) 14 years. Some of the convicted have appealed to the High Court.
According to charges, those convicted were contract killers and
killed five people from 1991-93 - businessman Ales Klatovsky, Vlastimil
Hodr, Anna Medkova (the owner of an erotic club and the mother of one of
the convicted), waiter Leorent Lipoveci and Meierova's husband Jaroslav.
The man who actually killed the victims was Ludvik Cerny, who shot them
in the back of the head. The others convicted found guilty of assisting,
preparing and attempting murder, for illegal possession of firearms and
fraud.
The whole case reach public in July 1995, when police fished out
from the bottom of Orlik dam a soldered-shut barrel containing the body
of one of the victims. In September 1995 divers found another two
victims, in a barrel and in wire mesh, in the same location. The court
also proved that accused persons sent the owner of the erotic salon
a package containing explosives, which killed her instantly. The last
murder was the murder of Meierova's husband.
David Simonik/Ondra Provaznik
Republicans Again Face Trial for Disturbances
Neo-fascist Republican deputies Josef Krejsa and Rudolf Smucr stood
together with party official Lubomir Votava before the County Court in
Litomerice April 21 for disturbing the peace at the National Cemetery in
Terezin in July 1994. The State prosecutor has accused them of throwing
eggs at people taken part in a commemorative ceremony, kicking into
bushes and shouting anti-German slogans. Terezin was the site of the
Nazi Theresienstadt deportation camp in World War II.
One of the accused, Lubomir Votava, is being charged with
disturbing the peace for the second time. In early March a Prague court
sentenced him to 16 months in prison with three years' probation for
assaulting a TV reporter during a Republican demonstration on the
anniversary of the founding of Czechoslovakia.
Marketa Kropacova/Zdenek Janda
FROM SLOVAKIA
Slovakia Also to Introduce Import Deposits May 1
The Slovak government was very disturbed by Czech economic measures
which will affect exports to the Czech Republic, and the Slovaks
prepared a number of restrictions which would make export to Slovakia
for Czech firms harder. The package of counter-measures will, among
others things, mean stronger ecological standards and it will also be
more complicated for Czech businessmen to get an import license. The
steps of the Slovak government are not only a reaction to the import
deposits enacted by the Czech government (see above). Their purpose is
also to lower Slovakia's perpetually increasing trade deficit, which was
reported at 15.9 billion crowns for the first three months of 1997.
Marketa Kropacova/Zdenek Janda
Anniversary of Tiso's Execution
The government-coalition Slovak National Party and Slovak
Foundation organized celebrations in honour of the 50th anniversary of
Josef Tiso's execution. Originally, the Catholic priest a deacon in
Banovce, and in the 20's he became involved in politics (from 1927-29 he
was a ministry of health and physical education). From 1939-45 he served
as president of Slovakia, which was granted the independence by Nazi
Germany (in the wake of annexing the territory of the Czech Republic to
Germany), but was merely a puppet of the Nazis. In 1947 Tiso was
sentenced to death by the National Court as a traitor.
This anniversary was celebrated during a commemorative ceremony
attended by Slovak National Party Chairman Jan Slota April 19 in Zilina.
Historians there said Tiso's trial was manipulated and they called for
a re-evaluation of Tiso. They consider him a prisoner for his occupation
and a martyr of conscience, they said.
There was also a commemorative ceremony the same day in Bytec,
birthplace of the first Slovak president. On this occasion a bust of
Tiso was unveiled on the house where he was born - the bust had once
been placed in the interior of the wartime Slovak Parliament. There were
a number of masses for the deceased during the weekend in Slovakia, the
biggest one officiated in Nitra's cathedral by Cardinal Jan Chryzostom
Korec.
Onrej Slavik/Zdenek Janda
ECONOMY
Economics University Honorary Doctorate for Milton Friedman
Prague's Economics University conferred an honorary doctorate upon
1977 Nobel Prize-winning American economist Milton Friedman.
Friedman fan and Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus was not able to
congratulate founder of monetarism until April 18, because Klaus was
busy discussing economic measures (see above) with the government. Czech
daily Lidove noviny then published April 19 Klaus' article "Milton
Friedman And Time Delay," where the prime minister pointed out that, in
spite of conferring the doctorate at Friedman's 85 years of age and 20
years after the Nobel Prize, Friedman's visit to the Czech Republic had
come just in time. Klaus cited Friedman's theory that "in reality the
healing of any illness in a complex system, there objectively exist
- unlike in simple technical systems - time delays which cannot be
eliminated or overcome."
Friedman refused to talk about the government's economic measures,
saying he does not know the Czech economic situation in detail, but in
his two Prague lectures he said the country was only halfway to a market
economy. According to Friedman, the Czech Republic still has to finish
privatization, improve laws to protect private ownership, restrict the
state's influence and establish a stable currency.
Libuse Kolouchova/Denisa Vitkova
Exchange Rates at the Czech National Bank
(valid from April 25)
country currency
------------------------------------------
Australia 1 AUD 23.642
Belgium 100 BEF 85.981
Great Britain 1 GBP 49.351
Denmark 1 DKK 4.655
Finland 1 FIM 5.908
France 1 FRF 5.261
Ireland 1 IEP 47.022
Italy 1000 ITL 17.872
Japan 100 JPY 24.168
Canada 1 CAD 21.917
Luxemburg 100 LUF 85.981
Hungary 100 HUF 16.830
Netherlands 1 NLG 15.762
Norway 1 NOK 4.318
New Zealand 1 NZD 21.080
Poland 1 PLN 9.679
Portugal 100 PTE 17.690
Austria 1 ATS 2.520
Greece 100 GRD 11.172
Slovakia 100 SKK 91.170
Germany 1 DEM 17.732
Spain 100 ESP 21.046
Sweden 1 SEK 3.979
Switzerland 1 CHF 20.756
USA 1 USD 30.484
ECU 1 XEU 34.586
IMF 1 XDR 41.769
CULTURE
Glenn Miller In Lucerna Hall
A classical swing ball took place in the Great Hall of Prague's
Lucerna Palace April 19 - with the Glenn Miller Orchestra calling the
tune. Prague residents have had the chance to meet this ensemble a few
times already, including a concert at the Rudolfinum (a site so stately
it was the seat of the Czechoslovak Parliament between the world wars).
However, this time the audience could enjoy the music as it was intended
- while dancing.
Miller became famous with his compositions in the late 30's. The
orchestra was popular especially among young people, but it also brought
an unusual perfectionism into the swing genre. During the war, the band
organized many concerts for the American units in Great Britain. During
one flight in 1944, their plane got lost and has never been found.
The orchestra which appeared in Prague came into existence in
1946. Since it endeavors for being as authentic as possible,
compositions like Moonlight Serenade, In the Mood, and Chattanooga
Choo-Choo were played just the same as 50 years ago.
Ondrej Slavik/Denisa Vitkova
April Issue of Czech Dialogue Published
Czech Dialogue is a Czech monthly magazine which, thanks to much
institutional and subscriber support, can be found throughout the world.
The April issue offers, apart from a rich outline of events in the Czech
Republic during February and March, the second part of a report entitled
Among Our People in Australia and an informational article about the
Czech language for foreigners at the Olomouc University College of
Humanities.
Czech Dialogue's subscription services offer the possibility of
ordering novels, specialized publications or audiocassettes. The
magazine also offers interviews, reviews and historical excursions. You
can order a subscription at the address of the editor's office:
U Pergamenky 8, Praha 7, zip code 170 00.
Michal Schindler/Sofia Karakeva
New Czech Miss for 1997
Terezie Dobrovolna, a 22-year-old student from Brno, became the new
Miss Czech Republic April 19 in Plzen, in the ninth year of the beauty
contest. Apart from this title she was also awarded three other prizes,
Miss Congeniality (voted by readers), Miss Photo (voted by
photographers) and Miss Public. Photos of Dobrovolna and other
contestants can be found at http://www.medea.cz/miss/
Lenka Javurkova/Sofia Karakeva
Painter and Graphic Artist Andrej Belocvetov Dies
Painter Andrej Belocvetov died April 19 at the age of 73. He was an
artist who, because of his individual approach to art and uncompromising
lifestyle, was for long years under the disfavor of the normalization
political regime. The public had the opportunity to be officially
introduced to nearly the whole of his work last year in Olomouc and
Prague during retrospective exhibitions.
The man who painted under the pseudonym Belotsvetov-Theakson was
born October 8, 1923, in a family of Russian emigrants in Prague. Under
the guidance of painter Grigoria Musatova he graduated from the Russian
High School and entered the State Graphic School, where he attended the
studio of Vlastimil Rada. After 1945 he exhibited his work together with
the Art Forum. During the 50's he became a member of the creative group
May '57. He started by painting landscapes, and later was influenced by
surrealism and gradually turned to an expressive, abstract technique. At
the age of 6O the exhibition of his works was forbidden, so he started
painting in solitude in his studio in Prague's colorful Zizkov
neighborhood. Among his most famous paintings is a 1953 portrait of
photographer Josef Sudek.
Michal Schindler/Sofia Karakeva
SPORTS
Soccer League Continues with 24th Round
Jablonec's loss in Brno and big wins for the next three candidates
for the league champion title are the results of the soccer league's
24th round, played April 18-20. Boby Brno surprisingly but deservedly
defeated Jablonec 3-0 and pushed them out of third place. Liberec then
stepped into third place after its 4-1 win over Hradec Kralove. Slavia
Praha won in Drnovice by the same score, while the match between Sparta
Praha and Opava finished 5-1 in Sparta's favor. Sparta leads the
standings ahead of Slavia, Liberec and Jablonec, but the Liberec-Slavia
and Jablonec-Liberec matches are yet to be played.
In other matches, only Zizkov managed to score and defeated Karvina
1-0, knocking Karvina into last place in the standings. The rest of the
matches (Teplice-Ceske Budejovice, Plzen-Ostrava and Olomouc-Bohemians)
finished 0-0.
Honza Mazak/Mirek Langer
After deadline: Liberec - Slavia Praha 2-3.
Hockey Players Prepare for World Championships against Finland
The Czech national hockey team played its last two preparation
matches before the April 26-May 14 World Championships against Finland.
The Czechs defeated their opponent 6-3 in Litvinov April 19, taking
advantage of several Finish defensive blunders. A much more balanced
match was played April 20, and the Finns won it 2-1.
Coaches Lener and Hlinka then published their final lineups for the
upcoming championships. The NHL's Hamrlik, who did not arrive due to
flight problems, and the injured Spacek, the most productive Czech
extraleague defenseman, were dropped before the last match. The coaches
then cut forwards Srsen, Kapusta and Zelenka from the squad.
Roman Jedlicka/Mirek Langer
WEATHER
Although recent days (for the how manyeth time this year?) again
foreshadow the beginning of the spring, nighttime temperatures continue
to fall under 0 degrees Celsius/32 degrees Fahrenheit and last weekend
the mountains (at least the Giant Mountains) reported the best snow
conditions in this year's ski season.
Mirek Langer
English version edited by Michael Bluhm
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